


Beast Wars in Prose Form

by TyrantLizardKing



Category: Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers: Beast Wars
Genre: Adaptation, Rewrite, Television
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-21
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:48:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27651583
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TyrantLizardKing/pseuds/TyrantLizardKing
Summary: A project I did for university: the first two episodes of the Emmy Award-winning television series Transformers Beast Wars done in prose form. Original scripts by Bob Forward.Mostly posting for publicity and future portfolio use.





	Beast Wars in Prose Form

Deep within space, a massive portal opened before an unknown planet. Two starships emerged, locked in heated combat: the Axalon, and the Darksyde. One was trying to stop the other from escaping further with a stolen artifact, a classic game of cop and robber.

The Darksyde emerged first, having taken less damage than its opponent; it had the advantage of being designed for combat. Its crew was manned by rogue members of the Predacon alliance, descendants of the Decepticon faction which had waged war on their home planet Cybertron generations ago. The Predacons, despite having ambitions against their adversaries the Maximals, were currently at peace.

And that’s why this unit aboard the Darksyde had gone rogue. Their leader, Megatron, had grand plans for domination of the galaxy, but currently he was trying to escape the reach of the law.

Aboard the Axalon, the Maximal crew scrambled to maintain what was a losing battle. Like their enemy, they were not supposed to be here either.

“Ah! Hull breach in sector seven!” The scout Cheetor reported. “Guidance systems failing!” The ship ruptured under heavy firepower; its crew couldn’t afford to keep this going for much longer.

“Gah! Oh man, this is ridiculous! We’re an exploration ship, not a battle cruiser!” Its helmsman Rattrap complained about their predicament as usual, only to be rebutted by their commander.

“Ugh...no choice! Our ship was the only one that could lock onto Megatron’s warp signature!” Optimus Primal, who had renamed himself after the Autobot leader Optimus Prime of old, didn’t like it either, but they were long past backing out now. He was determined to see this through one way or another.

Cheetor continued surveying the damage done, only delivering more bad news. “Shields are doing a major fade!”

Refusing to give up, Primal ordered a counterattack to keep them in the fight. “Plasma cannons to full power!”

\-----

On the Darksyde, things were looking in their favour. Many were eager to close in for the kill, including the ambitious warrior Dinobot, among the first to join Megatron’s crusade.

“Their shields are down! Destroy them!”

But his leader sadistically disagreed. “Now where’s the fun in that? A little torment I think first, yesss! Side guns, cripple them!”

The ships continued around the planet like cat and mouse, desperate to knock the other down first. Though the Axalon’s crew intended to hold out as long as possible, heavy damage courtesy of the Darksyde’s side guns put the ship’s flight systems out of commission.

“Ah, rupture!” Cheetor reported an even bigger problem. “The stasis hold is failing!”

The Axalon’s second-in-command, Rhinox, delivered the news they all knew. “We’re going down.”

Unwilling to take innocents down with them, Primal ordered the immediate release of their stasis pods, which contained new sparks that had yet to assume full form. “Launch all pods...get them into safe orbit!”

Thus, as the Axalon began spiralling down towards the planet below, its rear hatch opened to unleash a menagerie of stasis pods. Each pod momentarily found itself caught in the planet’s gravitational pull, safe for the moment from harm. 

Seeing an opportunity, Primal managed to take down the Darksyde with their last chance. As the ship veered out of control, it faced its opposite, perfectly aligned with the main weapons. “All plasma cannons: FIRE!”

Unprepared for the sudden relatalition, the Darksyde too sustained enough damage to be sent plummeting down towards the mystery planet. A chunk from one of the wings broke off in the process.

“Arrrrrrgh!” Megatron’s thrill of battle had cost him the advantage. Dinobot cursed his leader’s arrogance under his breath. 

Both spaceships entered the planet’s atmosphere, burning up as they did so. Each of the factions braced themselves for impact, praying they would live through it. They fell in divergent directions; the Axalon crashed into a mountainous area containing a canyon river, while the Darksyde found itself above a magma pool, deep within a volcanic landscape.

As of now, both crews were stranded here, lost in the unknown. And their fight was far from over.

\-----

“Ugh, damage report.” Optimus Primal spoke once they had all recovered.

“Believe me, you don’t want to know.” Cheetor confirmed his fears without much tact.

*sigh* “That’s what I thought. Rhinox, see if we can exit the ship yet.”

Rhinox obliged and initiated a scan of their new surroundings, only to make an important discovery... 

\-----

Despite their own predicament, Megatron seemed largely unfazed. While his lackeys scrambled to ensure nothing would explode on them, their leader stayed focused on his primary business.

“Navigation!” He bellowed. “Is this the right planet?”

_“Unknown. Course settings were accurate, but readings are inconsistent with those expected for the intended destination.”_

“Never mind that!” Megatron had a greater interest to confirm. “Tell me there is Energon here.” Energon was an energy form all Cybertronians could harness; not only was it their lifeblood, but it could be found as mineral deposits for increased potency.

_“Confirmed.”_ The display before him showed a hologram of the world, Energon readings spiking more than he had ever seen before- just what he wanted.

“Yes!” His eyes glowed with lust for power as he announced to his lackeys “The planet has Energon!”

However, the navigation served him a silver lining. _“Too much Energon. Field readings are off the scale. Continued exposure to robotic forms will result in permanent damage.”_

“Urgh!” Megatron slammed a fist into his chair. A setback already! He needed a solution to this if they were to venture out and collect crystals before the Maximals could do so.

Shielding. They needed to be shielded from the effects of the Energon, or face stasis lock- a shutdown of their bodies that with prolonged exposure could prove fatal.

Traditionally, Cybertronians took on vehicular forms to transform into, as transformation was a fundamental part of their species biology. However there were no vehicles to scan on this planet, only organic life. Thus, Megatron found his solution.

“Fine then; we will create new alternate forms based on the most powerful local creatures! Initiate an area search!”

Complying with his master’s order, the scurly scientist Tarantulas began the process. “Scanners heh, activated heh!”

A probe emerged from the roof of the Darksyde, sending out two massive waves in search of organic life based on the desires of its crew. Among the creatures it found were a wasp and a tarantula, as well as fossilized remains of a _Tyrannosaurus, Deinonychus,_ and _Pteranodon._ The Predacons each selected their new alternate form and entered the CR chambers to take on their new bodies.

\------

Having deduced the same problem and solution as their adversaries, the Axalon too scanned for lifeforms to replicate. With only four active crew members, the results were a gorilla, a rhino, a cheetah, and a rat. The Maximals had different tastes in creatures than the Predacons; they favoured mammalian forms over reptilian and insectoid.

Once the process was completed, Rhinox invited them to reveal their new forms. “Scanning and replication of local lifeforms...complete. You may emerge, and remember that these may take some getting used to.”

Standing up first was Cheetor, having naturally selected the cheetah as his beast mode. Growling with approval, his youthful personality was put on display as much as his spots. “Hey, look at me: I’m a cheetah! Perfect, huh?”

From within his chamber, Optimus examined his chosen gorilla form. He felt at home already. “Hmm, interesting.”

“Interesting?” Cheetor growled again as he admired his reflection against a metal cylinder. “Optimus, the word is _spot-on-smooth_.” Grinning, he was excited for the new ventures with this form he would take, not to mention his good looks. “It’s a crime…”

Then, an oversized rat- namely, Rattrap- emerged. “Ehh a bit tacky.” He crawled towards Cheetor, his dim frame still packing all of his signature sass. “Heh, you never had taste, didya kid? Now _this_ …” he stood up, flexing his new rodent muscles “... _this_ is what class is all about!”

“Oh yeah?” Cheetor was not one to be ousted for bravado. “How’s about I cut meeses to pieces?”

Both Maximals were interrupted by a heavyweight moving behind them: the gentle giant Rhinox, having taken the large form of a rhinoceros.His large horns were immediately made apparent as he put the rougher personality in his place. “Ease back Cheetor; living large is for forms like _me._ ”

“Yeah!” Rattrap ran with it anyway. “And just consider yourself lucky I didn’t get rough on ya!” He made small jabs at a scowling Cheetor, who still wanted to slice him up.

Finally, Optimus Primal himself emerged to take command on his group again. “Moderate your conflict circuits, Maximals.” He stepped out on all fours, walking on his knuckles as if he were a real gorilla. “Remember, these beast forms are to protect us from the long term effects of the Energon out there. We may need Energon for power, but this is too much of a good thing; our robot forms will start to short out after a few minutes of exposure.” 

When he reached the console, he stood up again, feeling even happier that his beast form shared features with that of his robot form. Examining the viewfinder for the outdoors, he remarked on their predicament: “This is one unusual planet, whatever it is…”

“Or whenever.” Rhinox added. “The transwarp drive can go through space _and_ time. We were locked onto Megatron’s warp signature; we could be any place, any time.”

Optimus completed their evaluation of the situation. “Yes, and our crew is orbiting the planet in those stasis pods we lost in battle. They’re protected from the Energon fields but…” he made a grim realization “...it means Megatron has us outnumbered.”

\-----  
  


Back at the Darksyde crash site, Megatron’s Predacon group was relishing in their new power. The crew was out testing their new beast forms: Waspinator, Terrorsaur, and Tarantulas prowled around the area, testing the limits of what they could do now. 

Terrorsaur, now a _Pteranodon_ (though he wasn’t bright enough to know what that meant) enjoyed taking to tall heights with his massive wings, freely swallowing up flocks of birds as he did so. Tarantulas relished in the tarantula’s ability to crawl on any surface and spin webbing for all kinds of purposes; this kind of versatility suited him well. And Waspinator, despite being arguably the goofiest of this Predacon team, still found something to appreciate as an oversized wasp.

All was not well however, for now Dinobot emerged from the Darksyde with furious disappointment. Surveying the landscape with a priceless artifact in his hand, he felt things could not have gone more wrong.

“No, no, NO!” His _Deinonychus_ form shrieked. “It’s all wrong...this cannot be Earth…”

Turning around, he spoke to the one following behind him. “Megatron, you failed. Not only did you fail to destroy the Maximals when you had the chance, you failed to bring us to the right planet! We stole the Golden Disk for nothing!” He threw the artifact away like a common piece of trash. “You IDIOT!”

Appalled, Megatron stepped forth from the darkness of the ship in his mighty new _Tyrannosaurus_ form. Though he was a dwarf imitation of the real species, he towered over Dinobot’s raptor nonetheless.

“I beg your pardon,” he spoke to his subordinate “what did you call me?”

Unafraid, Dinobot doubled down on his position. “You heard. You...are an idiot and an incompent leader! And I…” he delivered his ambition “...am taking over.”

With a screech, his beast form erupted into a mess of mechanical parts, reconfiguring shape to reveal Dinobot’s true self as a humanoid robot. He drew his primary weapons: a drill-like sword and a rotating propeller weapon formed from his beast mode’s tail that could act as a shield. Armed and dangerous, he advanced on his leader with vile demands. 

“I challenge you to battle, Megatron. The winner shall lead the Predacons...and the loser shall be destroyed.”

Despite this show of strength, Megatron merely smiled with amusement. “Ah, you’re so impulsive, Dinobot.” Instead of transforming himself, the tyrant turned away from his now-former warrior with different plans in mind. “Brave, but misguided.”

Angry at being ignored, Dinobot made the mistake of pursuing further. “Do you accept my challenge?!”

Megatron laughed. “There’s more to being a leader than simple courage. Why there’s cleverness...cunning as well…”

Too late Dinobot realized that his fate was sealed; as Megatron’s dinosaur tail moved out of the way, Scorponok’s robot mode revealed itself, weapons primed.

“Isn’t that right, Scorponok?” Megatron smirked, having bested Dinobot with no effort of his own. He watched with glee as the traitor was blasted by missile shells and sent flying for parts unknown. One less thing to worry about.

Presuming Dinobot dead and gone, Megatron pressed on with his own agenda. “Loser. What does it matter which planet we’re on?” He stomped forward, observing the landscape he walked across. “We came looking for Energon, and this planet is rich with the element. Enough Energon to power the Predacons’ entire galactic conquest!”

Hearing this, his remaining lackeys gathered around, sharing their leader’s ambitions.

“Wazzpinator wonder if Maximals still alive?” His speech was unlike any other ‘bot’s.

“We should find their heh, crash site heh heh.” Tarantulas’ mandibles rubbed together in unsettling fashion. “Then we can heh, scavenge their remains for our own purposes, heh ha ha ha...”

“Let’s go find ‘em, boss!” Terrorsaur squawked.

“Yes, yesss.” Megatron bellowed to his soldiers their first new orders on this planet. “Go, find them! And if you find them...destroy them. Whoever kills the most Maximals...shall be rewarded.”

Once again he smiled with his large, toothed jaw as one by one the Predacon soldiers took off to search the area. Megatron of course knew better than to let ambitious bots like Terrorsaur and Tarantulas roam freely; they were not totally loyal like Scorponok and Waspinator. Megatron took off on his own search, hoping he would be able to destroy Optimus Primal personally. 

The Maximals all had a bounty on their heads, one that could be claimed before the true battle even began.

\------

Outside the Axalon, the Maximals were still taking in this bizarre planet. Compared to the Predacons, the landscape their ship had crashed in was fittingly more peaceful; in addition to the river below the canyon there were lush green plains up ahead in the distance. Primal quietly took in the scenery, while Rhinox fiddled with some equipment which had been damaged in the crash. None of them had transformed out of their beast forms yet.

Making use of one of their elevators, Rattrap heaved off the last of the rocks that had gotten into the ship. Frustrated, he began lamenting about their situation. “Man, all this for a Golden Disk! I coulda been back home torturin’ prisoners right about now!” He missed his old job dearly.

“It was Cybertron’s most carefully-guarded relic, Rattrap.” Optimus Primal responded. “It gave the location of a major Energon source- that’s why Megatron stole it, and why we need to get it back.”

“Yeah, like I care.” Rattrap grumbled. “Y’know, we were supposed to be doing deep-space exploration. Playin’ galactic patrol was nowhere in my job description, you know what I’m sayin’?” Looking at his commander, he cast a shadow of doubt upon him. “You sure you’re cut out for this commander gig?”

Primal sighed at his mouthy soldier. “Remember the Great War, Rattrap. If the Predacons get enough Energon, they’ll start it again.” He closed one of his ape fists as he vowed “We can’t let that happen.”

Turning back around, he reflected on the scenery before them. “Besides, you wanted exploration and here we are on an unknown planet.” He shrugged. “What more do you want?” 

Rattrap scoffed with sarcasm. “Well er call me picky, but a working spacecraft might be nice?”

Primal sighed again. “Just no pleasing some people.”

Behind him, an elevator lowered from the Axalon to allow Cheetor’s agile beast form to leap out, his duties done for the moment. He quickly became enamored with the vast plains before his optics, even more so when he spotted something familiar. “Hey, check it!”

Two cheetahs were seen moving across the plains, out on the hunt. 

Primal commented to Cheetor on their agility. “They’re fast alright. You chose a good form.”

Unfortunately, he played into Cheetor’s brash ego. “Hey, you think that’s speed? You ain’t seen the golden rocket! Check this!” And before Primal could properly react, his underwing took off at high speeds.

“Cheetor, no!”

Cheetor quickly moved out of earshot, so Primal tapped his chest in an effort to reach his comm link and order him back.

“Cheetor, return to base immediately! We don’t have time for this!”

No response, only static. Not good.

“ Cheetor, please respond!”

Unable to make contact, Primal could only watch as Cheetor ran farther and farther away from the safety of the Axalon...heading out into the open where Predacons could be looking to slag him.

“No good.” Rhinox commented on the situation. “The Energon fields mess up the comm links. Anything over a hundred metres, they ain’t worth scrap.”

Primal had already found even more frustration with this crew. In times like this, he found himself uttering his favourite phrase: “Well, that’s just prime.”

At this moment Rattrap took another potshot at his leader, his small form proving to be a big annoyance. “So uhh, this is your first day on the job or what?”

“Shut up, Rattrap.” was all Primal responded with.

Mockingly, Rattrap stood to full height and saluted. “Oh, _yes sir!_ You know I feel just heaps better knowing our lives are in your capable hands.” He shook his head. “We’re all gonna die.”

\-----

In no time Cheetor had caught up with the pair of real cheetahs. Unaware that they lacked the ability to speak, he tried connecting with them. “The name’s Cheetor. What’s shakin’, cats?”

To his surprise, the real animals were spooked and ran away from him even faster. A confused Cheetor came to a halt. “What, is it my breath?” Then took off again. “H-Hey wait!”

The pursuit continued further down the plains, ending when Cheetor caught up to the cheetahs under a large tree. Both cats were snarling at something they’d never seen before; a green wasp as big as they were. As they took off again, Cheetor vocalized his further confusion. “Hey what? It’s just a big bug!”

Then, he took a closer look. The ‘big bug’ seemed to be interested in him, not them.

“Huh, the way those two reacted, that’s no natural lifeform.” His emerald eyes grew wide with the dawning of the truth. “And that can only mean one thing here: that’s a Predacon!”

Aggressively he transformed into his own robot form, laser gun in hand. “Time for this cat to pounce!” And he opened fire on his quarry.

The wasp quickly took evasive action, speaking up to confirm Cheetor’s suspicions. “Bzzz! Wazzpinator under attack! Wazzpinator engage enemy! Wazzpinator want reward from Megatron, heheh!” Waspinator transformed and returned fire, proving to have the advantage of remaining in flight in robot mode and forcing Cheetor to run for safety. The Predacon relentlessly pursued his Maximal quarry across the plains, confident he could make the kill.

\-----

Seeing explosions in the distance, Rattrap gulped “Uh oh.” before being swiped up by Optimus Primal, riding on top of Rhinox for transport.

“Move, move!” The trio began making their way towards their comrade’s position as fast as they could. Cheetor was under heavy fire without backup, and there was no telling when more Predacons might show up. They had to get there fast.

Crossing over the bridge leading to their base, the Maximal trio was faced with a smattering of boulders in their path.

“Hey, heads up!” The rat yelped. “Roadblock!”

Primal issued orders to the rhinoceros carrying them. “Veer left! There’s a clearing about a hundred metres!” However Rhinox kept going without stopping or slowing down, and Primal braced himself. 

“Uungh!” Rhinox dauntlessly smashed through the boulders with his horns.

Primal remarked on his lack of faith. “Ah yes, silly me.”

\-----

Having pursued Cheetor across the plains and back to the mountain area, Waspinator managed to pin him behind a bolder, deep in a ravine. Cheetor had been unable to fight back as his gun was malfunctioning.

“Gah! What a time for a quasar jam!”

Relief came when he heard Optimus Primal call to him from the top of the ravine. The Maximals had arrived. “Cheetor! Get to cover! We’re swat that pesky Predacon!”

Before any further action could be taken by them, a new voice spoke up. “Oh, I would not count on that Maximals. No, heh, for I believe that you are soon to have- how should I put it -difficulties of your own. Yesss…”

Primal’s crew looked to see the worst possible outcome: Megatron and his team had arrived, having also followed the sounds of battle on the plains. At last the two factions had met face-to-face. 

Despite the conflict that had led both of them to be stranded here, Primal remained calm under pressure, and spoke negotiability to his opposite leader. “We don’t have to do this, Megatron. There has been peace between the Maximals and Predacons for centuries. Why start this up again?”

Megatron snarled at this, considering that question a foolhardy one. “Peace perhaps on your side, Maximal scum! Yes...but not on ours. Permit me to inform you: an enemy that appears to be peaceful may be really...biding its time...”

In the midst of this, Cheetor’s gun came back online. “Finally!”

“We Predacons have never abandoned our rightful goal of galactic conquest!” Megatron’s dinosaur arms flailed around to illustrate his point as he rambled. “No, we have merely been waiting for the right moment...to STRIKE!”

On cue, Cheetor fired directly upon Megatron. “You mean like this?!” The blast caught the Predacon leader directly in the face, the key to seal their fate.

“Cheetor!” Primal knew what was coming now.

“Ahh,” Megatron bemused upon recovering, “a treacherous underhanded sneak attack. Ohohoho, I like you pussycat, yesss...but it shall avail you not! No, for now the power gauntlet has been cast!” With a roar, he ordered his troops to rise up. “Predacons, terrorize!”

Seeing that there would be no more opportunities for negotiations, Primal followed suit with his own crew. “Do it, maximize!”

The Predacons and Maximals collectively transformed, revealing their robot forms for what would be the first of many conflicts. Megatron bore the most fearsome sight; his _Tyrannosaurus_ head and tail became his arms while he himself stood the tallest of them all. By contrast, Optimus Primal was much smoother and cleaner in his appearance, his gorilla features largely disappearing into his body to be replaced by red and silver parts. 

Each bot stood poised for warfare despite the latter group being assigned for exploration; indeed the long history the Cybertronian race had had with faction-based conflict left it almost mandatory that everyone have some kind of weapon on their person. Rattrap drew his semi-automatic rifle, while Rhinox uncharacteristically sported two heavy chainguns of devastating firepower. Even Optimus Primal, a bot who preferred talk to action, was well-armed with Cyber Blades and pulse cannons. 

As Megatron observed his opponents, he could see that they were grossly outnumbered by his own group. It should be easy for his group to prevail over them. “Now! OBLITERATE THEM!”

Quickly the Maximals were forced to find cover as the Predacons unleashed everything they had. Between Megatron’s laser beams, Tarantulas’ auto-machine guns, Scorpnok’s missiles, Terrorsaur’s blasters, and Waspinator’s stinger rockets, the fight quickly grew one-sided. They returned what fire they could from behind cover, remaining heavily pinned down all the same.

Cheetor, seeing that the two sides were now exchanging blows, attempted to escape from the ravine back to his team...only for a stray Scorponok missile to send him reeling back down, his foot caught underneath a boulder. “Nnngh, I’m stuck!” 

“Rattrap, help Cheetor!” Primal called out amidst all the gunfire. “We’ll cover you!”

“Yeah right!” was Rattrap’s response, unwilling to risk his neck in the chaos.

“That’s an order, Rattrap!”

“Yeah? And you can just kiss my skid-plate fearless leader, cause I ain’t going out there and getting my pelt punctured!”

Frustrated with his orders being disobeyed, Primal huffed and decided to do it himself. Covering his approach with another shot, he took off to the skies with his built-in Prime Jets, braving the overwhelming Predacon firepower to reach Cheetor. Just before he could land safely, Megatron scored a direct hit on one of Optimus’ thrusters.

“Optimus!” Rhinox called out.

Rattrap snarked at him yet again. “Heheh, see? Tolja!”

Despite this, Primal was able to land on his feet, showing his courage off for all to see. He blasted the rock keeping Cheetor down and helped the young scout up. They needed to get out and back to the Axalon before things escalated further.

“Do not let them escape!” Megatron roared, pushing his soldiers to be as relentless in their assault as possible. His lackeys were proving less effective than he had hoped; if only Dinobot were still with them...

Deciding enough was enough, Rhinox put one of his weapons away before priming the other. He grabbed Rattrap with his free hand.

“Hey! Let me down, ya big bulldozer!”

Ever loyal to their cause, Rhinox ignored the hurled insult and forced Rattrap to be of help. “Cover fire; they need it, we give it. Now!”

Bravely, the two Maximals popped up from behind their boulder and wildly opened fire on the Predacons. The sudden retaliation caught the overconfident goons off-guard, enough to let Primal and Cheetor regroup with them safely.

“Back to the base!” Primal called for their timely retreat. “Let’s go, let’s go!”

As they turned to run, Megatron’s fury reached a new level. “After them! Go you- unaaaghhh!!!”

His orders were cut off by the shock of pain; the Predacons had been in robot mode for too long, and were now experiencing the deadly effects of Energon overexposure. Each of them surged with energy; Terrorsaur and Waspinator falling to the ground suddenly.

“Wazzpinator--cannot--urghhh…”

“Energon...buildup!” Megatron staggered under its effects. “Convert back to beast mode!” He did so just before he went into stasis lock, then ensuring that his lackeys followed suit. Megatron recognized that some battles would have to be fought without use of their robot forms if they were to survive.

The Maximals had escaped for now, but this was far from over. Once the Predacons had recovered, they would pursue their quarry again.

\-----

With all that had transpired, the sun had begun to set. The Maximals were nearly back to the Axalon, albeit taking their time after the battle’s aftermath. Primal had sent Cheetor to make sure they were not being immediately pursued.

Riding on Rhinox’s broadside once again, Optimus Primal reached behind his own back and grabbed Rattrap. There was a talk they needed to have.

“Hey! What’s got your servos so thin?”

Angry was Primal with the disregard for command. “Let’s get one thing straight, Rattrap: I am commander of this group, and when I give an order I expect it to be obeyed!” 

As usual, Rattrap only replied with sass rather than understanding. “Oh, yeah? So I get vaped because you’re too cowardly to go yourself? Some leader!”

This only frustrated Primal further. “I would not give an order that I would not be willing to do myself!” He took a breather. “But I was capable of giving you better cover fire. You were not, but you should learn from Rhinox’s example of what it means to be loyal and helpful.” With that said, he tossed the small soldier back behind him.

“I just do what’s right.” Rhinox mumbled.

“Ehhh come on.” Rattrap was still casual. “Whaddya shortin’ about? We got outta there alive, didn’t we?”

“But injured.” Primal corrected him. “It’ll take time for our beast forms to complete internal repairs. That may put us at a disadvantage against the Predacons if we’re not ready for the next encounter.”

“Yeah, well...that’s why I play it safe, y’know? Better you than me.”

Tired of the conversation, Primal went quiet. Once they were within one hundred metres of the Axalon, Cheetor returned from scouting. “I think we gave them the fade, Optimus.”

“Keep your sensors on full.” Primal advised his group. “According to the Golden Disk theft report, there were _six_ Predacons. One of them was missing from the battle.”

Optimistic for once, Rattrap noted a possibility. “Maybe he was destroyed in the crash?”

Rhinox grumbled at him. “That kind of luck we haven’t been getting much of, lately.”

“Tell me about it.” Cheetor agreed. “Look!”

The four of them came to a stop as their path back to the Axalon was being blocked. Standing on the bridge before them was their missing Predacon, as if they’d conjured him from mere mention alone. Though he appeared hostile, he did not immediately move to attack, something that gave Optimus Primal pause. Perhaps this time things could be talked through without needing to draw weapons.

“Should we blast him?” Rhinox asked Primal, speaking for Cheetor and Rattrap as well.

“Keep that option open, but...hang on.” He marched forward to hear the Predacon out.

“Attention, Maximals!” His raspy voice growled for them all to hear. “My name is Dinobot. I have left the Predacons to join your group…”

_A defector?_ Primal thought to himself. _That wasn’t what I expected. But if it means equal odds..._

Dinobot finished his sentence, taking all of them by surprise “...as leader.”

“What?” Cheetor remarked. “Did I hear the word ‘leader’?”

Rhinox was befuddled. “This guy’s got bearings of chrome steel.”

Dinobot was only further motivated by those reactions. “I hereby challenge you, Optimus Primal,” He pointed at his adversary, “to a one-on-one battle. The winner shall lead the Maximals, and for the loser, well…it is a long way down.”

Primal surveyed the canyon around them. There was no way to get out of this now.

He would have to face Dinobot alone, for the fate of not only his team, but his own life as well.

“I don’t want to fight you!” Primal objected.

“You do not have a choice!” Dinobot rebutted. “Your command center is back there, and no one crosses this bridge until you oblige my request.”

“Don’t we get a say in this?” Rhinox budged in.

Yet again Rattrap showed disregard for Primal. “Let Chopperface and the boss duke it out! No fur offa my tail…”

“No way!” Cheetor had the opposite reaction. “Hey scale belly! How about you get a piece of me too?!”

Primal held a hand up to stop him. “Cool your circuits Cheetor. As I told Rattrap, I wouldn’t send anyone to do anything I wasn’t willing to do myself.”

“Ooh yeah, sure.” The rat chuckled. “Saying that will fix everything!”

*groan* Primal turned back to his opponent. “This is foolish, Dinobot! We’re Maximals, you are a Predacon!”

Dinobot displayed a sharp-toothed grin. “All the more reason I should lead, then. I know the enemy better than any of you do.”

“Look,” Primal attempted reason again “I don’t know what happened between you and Megatron, but-”

“Megatron!” Dinobot exclaimed at the mention of his former, idiotic leader. “That incompent fool will fall as soon as I have your Maximals at my command!”

Primal disagreed, posing an alternative scenario with a finger pointed at the raptor. “You are welcome to join us, Dinobot. But you shall _not_ lead!” 

And yet again, Dinobot would not give in to a different method. “I beg to differ, for I have already reprogrammed myself to be registered as a Maximal in anticipation of my new role as your leader. Now, face me!”

Dinobot transformed and deployed his weapons. He stood a full head taller than Optimus Primal, and was very confident that the outcome of this would be far more in his favour compared to his attempt on Megatron.

Regretfully, Optimus transformed into his own robot form, revealing his pair of Cyber Blade swords to defend himself with.

As the one-on-one match began, Cheetor again tried to get himself involved. “I’m going in there! Hang on Optim-” He was cut off by Rattrap’s rat hands closing his mouth prematurely.

“Clamp it, kid. Nailing the chopper from behind won’t settle anything.”

“Yeah.” Rhinox agreed. “Whether we like it or not, we gotta let them finish.”

All they could do was watch as Dinobot aggressively approached their leader, who only seemed interested in avoiding serious injuries for both of them. Dinobot leaped at Primal, who knocked him away. Then he tried a higher approach, this time knocking Primal over, whose foot slipped and knocked some rocks down the canyon to remind him of the ever-present danger.

However this gave Dinobot too much confidence; as he prepared to stab Primal with his sword, he was swiftly punched in the face and fell down, de-armed. Gently, Primal tipped his chin up with one of his swords, and Dinobot begged for the end.

“Hghhh, I still live! Finish me…”

But instead Primal, though already tired, put that sword away, leaving his hand free to reach down and offer Dinobot to get back up on his feet. “That’s not how we Maximals do things.”

“Then that...will have to change!” Dinobot’s red eyes shifted to green, and then blasted Primal in the face, sending him staggering backwards and teetering over the edge of the bridge, only held up by his legs. Cheetor was left in suspense, while Rhinox shook his horned head.

Now Dinobot loomed over Primal instead, sword pointed at his foe’s chest. Given how Dinobot had refused Primal’s offer for mercy, the latter felt his end might have come. 

Instead, Dinobot grabbed the Maximal by the chest and hurled him up back onto the bridge; an act of mercy. Naturally, Primal was left confused.

“Wh-What are you doing? You’d won!”

Dinobot shook his head with frustration in his voice. “No, you slipped. To defeat you in such a pathetic manner would be lacking in honour. I would not have earned the right to lead.”

_Honour?_ Primal’s thought to himself again. _So there is decency among his kind after all…_

Of course, the battle wasn’t over. “I prefer to beat my opponents the old fashioned way…” Dinobot’s sword ignited with energy as he charged again “...BRUTALLY!”

This time Primal made a more active effort to halt his foe’s assault, clanging their blades over and over until they came to a struggle. He let some of his thoughts surface themselves. “For a Predacon, Dinobot, you have qualities I could like!”

“And you- agh -have proved to be a worthy adversary.” Dinobot pushed back as much as Primal did. “I will have you recycled with full honours!”

“Well, that’s just prime!”

\------

Unbeknownst to Dinobot or any of the Maximals, there were more spectators now.

“Well, this is an interesting sight, yes.” Megatron narrated to his Predacon group, all recovered and having caught up with their enemies again. “Optimus and the traitor Dinobot engaged in battle! Hm, I should have known his pesky sense of honour would lead him to them…”

Out of sheer curiosity, Scorponok asked “Who do you think is going to win?”

“Oooh,” Waspinator commented from the back of the group “Wazzpinator bet on Optimuzzz.”

“Hehehahaha,” Tarantulas cackled at him, “The winner isn’t what interests me, hehe…”

“Nor me.” Megatron agreed with the apparent lunatic. “No, how much more preferable would it be if they... _both_ lost? Yesss!”

“I see where this is going.” Terrorsaur became excited.

“Destroy that bridge! We’ll send both of them to the pits in one fell swoop!” Megatron and the Predacons transformed, then opened fire on the combatants.

\------

As the first shots came in, Rattrap noticed their new guests. “Yow! Shift yer scanners to east end pals, cause this party’s got big-time crashers!”

With the duelists now having abandoned weapons in favour of pure melee combat, neither noticed the incoming hailstorm until Cheetor called out to his leader. “Optimus, look out!”

Shoving Dinobot aside for a second, Optimus Primal reverted to gorilla form and grabbed Dinobot to evade the shots targeting them specifically. From the Maximals’ point of view, they appeared to have fallen off, with Cheetor calling out “Optimusss!”

Moments later, he heard the sound of the gorilla’s voice again. “If you guys aren’t doing anything,” he groaned inbetween laser fire, the rocky bridge beginning to thin out, “a little speed would be prime!”

“Make them fall, yes!” Megatron bellowed dramatically.

“Let’s go!” Cheetor and Rhinox transformed to robot form, moving to save their leader...but then noticed Rattrap hadn’t done anything at all. Rhinox tapped him on the head.

“Hey hey,” Rattrap spoke without facing him, “ _you_ go and get yourselves scrapped cause I ain’t-” and then was picked up by a very annoyed Rhinox. “-alright.”

Over on the bridge, Primal was hanging on with little more than one of his gorilla legs. By now he was very appreciative of this form and its dexterity, especially as Dinobot dangled below him. 

But then the curse of this planet took hold again, as Dinobot suddenly writhed in pain. “Aughh, the Energon fields! I am...shorting out!...”

Primal held his grips as best he could. “Hang on! You can’t transform in this position!”

“Release me!” Dinobot demanded. “Let me fall, and save yourself…”

“Grngh, now where’s the honour in that? Gah!”

By now his grasp on the bridge was moments away from finally giving away, Primal’s gorilla face visibly showcasing his final struggle.

Still malfunctioning, Dinobot remarked “You do not have a choice…”

But that wasn’t fair to him. “Then we... _both_ go!” 

The rock gave way, and the Maximal & Predacon started to fall...only for Rhinox to grab them in the nick of time. “Going up?” With all his might he hauled the duo back up onto the bridge, where Dinobot was finally able to assume beast mode and spare himself the threat of stasis lock.

Things had never looked better for the Predacons than now. “This is our opportunity, yes!” Megatron primed his laser cannon. “All weapons!”

The full might of the Predacon artillery finally took its toll on the rocky bridge, which began crumbling as the Maximals ran for their lives. Rattrap lagged behind the rest of them, momentarily falling before Primal snagged his arm. The former observed the gravity of the situation, having come this close to a swift death.

Primal swung up over onto safe ground. “You’re welcome.”

Rattrap seemed impartial to giving thanks. “You’re the leader, it’s your ehhh job.”

Optimus Primal nearly rebutted but spared himself further frustrations and walked away.

Meanwhile on their vantage point, Megatron was once again furious with his lackeys for their failure to capitalize on a pivotal moment. He smacked Terrorsaur around before yelling at them all “Incompetents! You let them escape! Perhaps all of you should follow Dinobot to the Maximals, so I won’t feel bad about destroying you!”

Luckily for them, Scorponok quickly restored Megatron’s good side. “Megatron, look up there! Look what our stray missiles revealed!”

“Hmm?” Megatron’s optics presented him with a glorious sight; the first shots that had missed Primal and Dinobot had instead struck a mountain in the distance, blowing it open to reveal an incredible Energon deposit within. Centered was a massive crystal, it alone containing enough power for either side to achieve total domination in the conflict.

“Energon! Yesss!” He was elated to say the least. “Raw, natural Energon crystals! I _knew_ they were here!”

His gloating was cut off as he and the rest of his lackeys began shorting out; that much exposure wouldn’t let them stay in robot forms long at all.

“Rrrgh...return to beast mode! We head for that crystal to extract it!” With no more time to waste, the Predacons transformed back to begin their march towards the mountain. Total victory was this close to Megatron already, and once he had claimed the deposit nothing would ever stop him.

\------ 

As the Maximals recovered, Optimus too observed the exposed Energon mountain. Despite the danger, it was a very beautiful sight to behold. “Raw Energon...in its natural form it is highly unstable. We’re lucky those missiles didn’t cause it to explode.”

Rhinox commented again on the Maximal fortune. “If you can call it lucky…”

Cheetor realized what he meant as he shared the sight. “Megatron’s on the move!” He examined their current location; the Predacons were advancing towards the mountain at an alarming rate. “They’re not gonna waste time getting there, Optimus.”

Dinobot quickly deduced Megatron’s intentions. “He’s after the Energon! A crystal of that size would make him...unstoppable…”

Unfortunately his words fell on Rattrap’s ignorant audio receptors. “Oh well, thanks for the hot tip, scalebelly!” He nodded to the bulldozer next to him. “Rhinox, scrap dis guy.”

Rhinox complied and charged at Dinobot from behind, only to be halted by Optimus Primal. “Hold on, Rhinox!” He recognized the benefits of having an enemy now being their ally. “Will he send flyers?”

Rattrap groaned. “Oh, for the love of Primus! You’re not gonna believe a Predacon, are ya?”

Primal shut him down with the chain of command. “That’s _my_ call.” He asked again. “Will he?”

Dinobot was annoyed at the lack of faith from the group, but answered the question. “Mmm negative. The crystal is too big for the flyers to carry. Only Tarantulas has the skill to segment it for safe removal.”

That settled it for the Maximals. “Then we have to get there first. All _five_ of us.” He glared at Rattrap as he spoke.

“Yeah, all _five_ of us!” Rattrap laughed determinedly before realizing what that meant, “...Wait, you mean...Chopperface is goin’ with…?” He sighed with a shrug to accompany it. “We’re all gonna die.”

And then he noticed the others had already started moving. “Hey! Wait for me!”

\------

All that power before him. All of it natural and raw, all for him to seize and abuse as much as he liked. With each clawed stomp he took towards the mountain, Megatron grew more anxious over how he would use that Energon against his enemies. He rambled to Scorponok, his forever-loyal second-in-command and the only one who always listened to him. “So much Energon...with a crystal that size, the Predacon forces would be unstoppable. Yesss...the Maximals, and then the galaxy, will be ours to conquer!”

It was a race that might determine the outcome of the entire war. Neither side could afford to lose this.

\-----

Nightfall, and the Maximals were closing in on the mountain. They had taken a different route from the Predacons and currently hadn’t seen them for a while. For now, there was calm.

“How are you feeling?” Rhinox asked Primal as they made up the front of the pack. His leader had been through a lot today.

“Improved.” Was Primal’s reply, walking at a steady pace again. “I believe my internal repairs have been completed.”

“Mmm, I was wonderin’...” Rhinox mumbled, “your flight in robot form could make it to the crystal before any of us.”

“No, we _have_ to stay together. The Predacons could attack us at any moment, and there may be other surprises on this planet.”

Just as Primal said that, Rhinox proved his point. “There are...down there, look.” He gestured towards the plains below the canyons they were traveling across. Down there was an usual stone formation that seemed to be grounds for something greater.

Whatever its purpose, it was not of this world. Primal observed the sight with great curiosity, one hand over his chin. “Hmm, unusual. Any opinions?”

“Just one: it isn’t natural.” By now the whole group had stopped to see the bizarre sight, as Rhinox delivered the hard truth. “We didn’t build it, and neither did the Predacons. So _who_ did?”

Before any of them could attempt to answer that question, Cheetor shifted gears towards a more prevalent problem. “Heads up!”

In the night skies above them, Waspinator and Terrorsaur made themselves known. Switching from beast to robot forms, the evil pair descended to attack the Maximals, who transformed themselves.

“Defensive positions!” Primal ordered.

“Yeah, and what about him?” Rattrap’s gun was pointed at Dinobot, his trust still not won.

Optimus Primal frustratingly reassured Rattrap, saying “He’s with _us_!” This recurring problem was something they needed to sort out later.

“Y-Yeah I ain’t buyin’ it just cause you say so!” 

Just then the hailstorm of laser bolts and missiles came from the Predacons, forcing Rattrap and the others to duck for cover. The Maximals were pinned down under an open cave system, and their return fire wasn’t helping things.

“Hold your fire! We could start an avalanche!” Primal called as the fliers were making their way back for another airstrike.

“You crossed yer wires?!” Rattrap barked. “They’re comin’ back!”

Taking things into his own hands, Primal yelled “I’ll handle this!” and took off on his Prime Jets, deploying his flight guns as he did so. He got a lucky break when Terrorsaur and Waspinator began shorting out from Energon overexposure, as their shots missed while Primal landed a direct hit with his missiles. The Predacons made a swift retreat, hoping to return to Megatron safely.

Dinobot was unhappy with the idea of them escaping. “No! They are weak!” He fired upon them with his eye lasers, unintentionally hitting stalactites lining the roof of the mountain cave. While the fliers got away, Rhinox was forced to jump away before a boulder could crush him.

Thinking that was intentional, Rattrap confronted Dinobot. “I knew it, ya traitor! Ya tried to scrap my pal!” He tackled the warrior to the ground and then aimed the barrel of the gun between his optics. “Once a Pred... _always_ a Pred.”

Once again Optimus Primal stopped Rattrap from acting out of line. “Ease off Rattrap, it was an accident.”

“Says you!”

“That’s right: says me!” Primal had had enough of his actions. “You want to question my orders _one more time?”_

“I...uh…” Rattrap stepped off of his quarry, still a little wary. “Nyeh I don’t trust Predacons.”

Saved, Dinobot threw off the gun and stood back to full height, making sure to emphasize that he was nearly twice the size of Rattrap. Were he still a Predacon as the rat claimed, he likely would have eviscerated him now.

But that wasn’t the case. Primal brought the group back under his control. “We’ve got enough trouble with Megatron’s crew on the loose without fighting amongst ourselves. Now come on!” 

They had to make up for lost time, and fast.

\------

By now the Predacons had nearly ascended the mountain. Megatron could hardly contain his excitement. “Sooo much Energon, yesss. I can almost _taste_ its power!”

Tarantulas warned his leader of the dangers they were coming upon. “Hehheh, the Energon fields will destroy our robot forms in less than a minute! We will have to stay in beast form! And Optimus and the Maximals are coming!”

Megatron wasn’t worried about anything, least of all them. “They must stay in beast form as well, and I will handle Optimus... _personally._ ”

\------

At last Primal had reached the summit, where he could see the crystals up close. It was such a lovely sight that he hated the notion of the Predacons only seeking to stripmine it all away.

The rest of the Maximals clambered their way in, where their enemies were already waiting. Megatron dramatically addressed his archnemesis. “Across the galaxy, it has come to this, Optimus Primal! Face to face, tooth to claw, yesss...have you anything to say?”

Primal only replied with this, smirking as he did. “I’d say that’s prime. Let’s do it!”

The time for talk was no more: Maximal and Predacon charged at one another ferociously, each looking to take down the other and preserve the Energon deposits for themselves. Their beast forms proved to provide new and different forms of combat as opposed to shooting at each other from behind cover. Cheetor pounced on Waspinator in mid-air and forced him to the ground. Rattrap leaped on top of Tarantulas and grabbed his front mandibles for disorientation. Rhinox charged directly at Terrorsaur, who narrowly evaded as the bulky Maximal plowed through solid rock behind him. Dinobot and Scorponok were in a stalemate; Dinobot’s dinosaur jaws were matched by the ferocity of Scorponok’s pincers and stinger tail.

For the faction leaders, they found themselves going back and forth. Primal did his best to keep Megatron from landing a critical blow: a single bite or tail swing could quickly turn things in his favour. After several failed attempts, Megatron adjusted the timing of his next charge, catching Primal off-guard. He found himself pinned to the ground, as Megatron tried to bite his gorilla head whole. 

“Admit defeat, Maximal!” Megatron spoke as he could while Primal barely held him back. “The Energon shall be ours!”

“Grgh...not if... _I_ can help it!” Primal brought his legs underneath his foe and kicked him over, sending the dinosaur reeling into another rock formation. The speed he’d been sent with left his massive _Tyrannosaurus_ head caught in a tight spot, and Megatron struggled to free himself.

“Surrender Megatron!” Optimus Primal got back on his feet. “You’re trapped!”

“No! You shall not defeat me so easily!” Exerting new force, Megatron wrestled himself free of the rocks and charged towards his nemesis again at full speed. This time, he would make it count. 

Primal attempted to stop the reptilian in his tracks, but instead found his smaller form caught on his snout. Megatron rammed the both of them into a wall, and while Primal was disoriented he chomped down on his left thigh, creating a massive armour wound. Primal yelled in pain, which spurned him to bat Megatron away with two fists. Quickly, he grabbed the dazed dinosaur by the tail and spun him around, before throwing him as hard he could. Megatron collided with the inside of the mountain, though he forced his body up again fast.

Optimus Primal collapsed on the ground, holding his leg in pain. “It is over, Megatron!”

But Megatron still wasn’t finished. “No! It is never over!” And he made a suicidal gamble, transforming to robot form. Mere seconds after doing so he began shorting out from the massive amounts of Energon exposed here, but he still aimed his missile launcher at his downed nemesis. “For if I must die...IIIII shaall taake youu with mee!”

He fired, and Primal was unable to evade. None of the other Maximals could help him, still preoccupied with their own duels. 

So instead Dinobot ran into the line of fire, using his raptor tail to lightly flick the missile and change its flight path. Instead of Optimus, Megatron’s rogue missile struck the mountain itself, immediately creating an intense overload of energy. All Cybertronians presented stopped as they could feel what was happening now.

“It’s gonna blow!” Rhinox yelled. 

“Time to fade, guys!” Cheetor grabbed Rattrap in his jaws as Dinobot helped Primal onto Rhinox’s backside. The Predacons quickly scrambled to escape as well, with Scorponok and Waspinator hauling Megatron’s now-inactive robot form out.

Both parties were able to successfully reach a safe enough distance, still feeling the surge of energy from the mountain. They watched as it collapsed in on itself, before exploding wildly with violent force. It sent a power wave across the landscape, felt by all in its vicinity. Large and small rocks rained down in the aftermath.

“No…” Megatron weakly remarked, only now starting to recover from his near-death experience, “...the Energon crystal…”

“Have no heheh, fear my liege, heh.” Tarantulas cackled. “There is far more Energon on this planet than we think.”

Dim-wittedly Scorponok replied “Yeah, but why?”

“Who cares?” Terrorsaur cackled. “As long as we get enough, we’ll slag those Maximals yet!”

“Yes...yesss.” Megatron agreed with his goons. “They will get their reckoning soon...but for now, we must return to the Darksyde. Waspinator, Terrorsaur, go on ahead and prepare to everyone’s quarters.”

The fliers complied, making their way off back towards the volcanic region while the others followed on foot. Megatron may have lost today’s battle, but the war was his to win.

\------

“That was close!” Cheetor remarked. “What was Megatron thinking?”

“He doesn’t.” Rhinox grumbled.

“Thanks.” Primal acknowledged Dinobot’s act of bravery. “I wouldn’t be here now if you hadn’t done that.”

Dinobot gave his new leader a correction. “My actions did not imply loyalty, Optimus. I merely owed you my life, and now we are even.”

“I’ll accept that.” Primal nodded. “And we’ll all-” he looked at Rattrap one last time “-accept you into our ranks, Dinobot.”

Unable to object to that, the rodent brought up a different question. “Are we sure the Preds didn’t get slagged in that big kaboom?” 

“Mm, Megatron may be an idiot, but he is more tenacious than anyone I know.” Dinobot addressed the group. “He will return, and he will not stop searching for Energon or trying to destroy you all.”

“Then it’s our duty to put a stop to his ambitions. Until we can get off-world, all of us are stranded here on this unknown planet.” Primal declared this their true mission.

“How lucky then that we have what we need to stay alive.” Rhinox commented positively for a change, if darkly.

“But why is there so much Energon on this planet anyway?” Cheetor scratched his furry head with one paw. 

“We’ll figure that out eventually.” Primal motioned for them to start moving. “For now, let’s get back to the Axalon and make space for our new member.”

As Rattrap complained to Rhinox and Cheetor about something new, Dinobot thanked Optimus for his hospitality. The two felt that there could be some hope for them after all, during what history would come to remember as... 

...the Beast Wars.


End file.
